Long Lost
by Kerii-tan
Summary: When the sister he'd always loved is a liar, when he finds he had a sibling stolen from him long ago. Betrayal hurts more than anything, but the love of a brother can help ease that pain. // LuluRolo
1. Curious Little Witch

"_What do you say to a brother you've only just met after 14 years?"_

_Though Rolo kept his back to the other, stubbornly remaining silent, he'd visibly stiffened at those words._

"_...Welcome home, perhaps?"_

----

"...Mm, I'm home."

Lelouch dropped his schoolbag into one of the dining rooms chairs, heaving a sigh.

"Welcome home, Onii-sama!" The voice that greeted him was sweetly cheerful, as a young girl wheeled into sight, bound to her chair by useless legs.

His mouth broke into a gentle smile, the one her reserved just for her. "How was your day?" she asked, returning a smile she was unable to see.

"Typical, boring, the same as always," he replied nonchalantly, crouching beside her wheelchair and smoothing down her wavy locks of honey brown. "And how was your day, Nunnally?" He pronounced his sister's name as if it were something to be treasured dearly.

She giggled at his touch. "Sayoko-san showed me more origami today! Though, I still like the cranes best..." Nunnally caught his hand in hers, surprisingly deft for a blind child, and held it lightly. "Oh, and C.C.-san came over!"

At this news, Lelouch's face fell, yet Nunnally continued on unaware of this. "She did origami with us for a while, and she ordered a pizza for all of us, too! Isn't that nice of her? Sayoko-san seemed happy that she didn't have to cook as well..."

"Yes, that's very nice of her," Lelouch replied in a strained tone, running a hand through his own dark hair in exasperation. "I'll have to remember to thank her later. And where are Sayoko and C.C. now?"

"Oh, C.C.-san said she had to go home a little while ago," she answered, "And Sayoko-san went to run me a bath."

He stood as she released his hand. "Aa, that's good then. Why don't you go get washed up now?"

"Alright, Onii-sama."

She wheeled herself off to the bathroom from where sounds of running water and Sayoko humming to herself drifted, and Lelouch went to his own bedroom. Slipping inside and locking the door behind him, he turned a glare on the green-haired girl lounging on his bed and eating a slice of pizza, the box half-empty next to her.

"'Had to go home,' huh?" he asked, rolling his eyes. "And I've told you, don't eat on my bed. You'll leave crumbs."

"I grew bored of folding paper," the girl said simply. She blatantly ignored his request, picking up another slice instead.

"Didn't I also say not to order pizza on my credit card without my permission, C.C.?"

She shrugged, rolling onto her stomach and picking at the comforter, careless of the grease she was getting on it. "It made your sister happy, didn't it? You should be grateful."

Lelouch scowled at the stains she was leaving on the sheets. Didn't that witch know how hard it was to wash out grease stains? And he'd have to do it himself, considering how difficult it would be to explain to Sayoko how the stains got there in the first place. "Whatever," he muttered, taking a seat at his desk and flipping open his laptop.

A few minutes passed in silence, nothing but the sounds of Lelouch tapping away at his keyboard and C.C. chewing on cheese and pizza crust. It was a silence the prince was thoroughly enjoying. So of course, the damned witch had to break it.

"Ne, Lelouch, you love Nunnally, right?"

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Obviously," he replied. After all, he'd hardly be resorting to terrorist acts if he didn't.

C.C.'s voice broke in again. "Unconditionally?"

"Of course."

"Even if she didn't care about you?"

What a stupid thought. "Yes."

"Even if she'd been lying to you all along?"

Lelouch gritted his teeth, trying to keep his voice even. It was quite difficult, C.C. seemed to love nothing more than driving him nuts. "Nunnally wouldn't lie to me."

"It's a hypothetical question, Lelouch."

"Then yes. Even if she lied, I'd still love her."

"Why?"

Exasperated, the brunette boy turned away from the screen of his laptop to face her. "Why are you asking all of these idiotic questions?"

C.C. treated him to a smirk. "What, afraid to do a bit of actual thinking about these sort of things, boy?"

"Tch." He turned back to his work with a huff, choosing to ignore the 'boy' comment. "Fine. I love her because she's my sister. It's only natural. Happy now?"

Much to Lelouch's annoyance, the witch persisted. "What if she weren't your sister?"

"Now you're just being ridiculous."

"Answer the question, Lelouch."

"I won't," he snapped. "It's unnecessary and stupid, now will you shut up so I can get some work done?"

C.C. pursed her lips, looking only a bit less irritated than the prince. How dare he speak so rudely to her, regardless of what she said to him, because the whole rudeness thing didn't work both ways, so she didn't need to worry about it herself. A few more minutes passes in silence before she spoke up again.

"Ne, Lelouch..."

Lelouch felt his eye twitch. "_What_, C.C.?"

She paused for a moment, her golden eyes lacking their usual lofty mirth. "Lelouch..." she repeated gingerly, searching for the best way to word her question. When she found nothing suitably polite, she just went with her more typical blunt phrasing. "What would you do if I told you she wasn't really your sister?"

He narrowed his eyes at the green-haired girl, giving her a cold violet stare. "I said enough of your silly hypothetical questions."

"Who said this one was hypothetical?"

"Huh?"

"I'm being serious, Lelouch," C.C. drawled. She faced him fully, the pizza beside her temporarily abandoned. "What will you do...if I tell you Nunnally is not really your sister?"

* * *

Aaaand chapter 1 done! =D Sorry that this first chapter is a bit short, they get longer from here on out. And apologies if these early chapters aren't as good as the ones that will come, setting up a plot as a background for a love story is difficult, and as much as I would love to just jump right into the LuluRolo, I have an obsessive need to set up an entire story before anything else... XD; Hope it satisfies nonetheless. And for those who are waiting for the yaoi and brotherly love to begin, have patience. This is gonna be a loooong fic, so it'll be a few chapters before we get there XD; And sorry for the lack of Rolo this first chapter, I promise the next one should satisfy his fans more =D

I'm aiming to upload a chapter a week, updates occuring on Sundays out of pure nostalgia (who else besides me misses Geass Sundays to death?). Reviews would be greatly loved and appreciated!


	2. What Do You Mean She's Not My Sister?

Thanks to everyone who reviewed and added this fic to their favorites and alerts! I'm glad to see there are people interested in this, so I'll keep at it right to the end! I hope you enjoy~!

Disclaimer: Code Geass belongs to Sunrise, not me, ect.

* * *

Large purple eyes met amber, blinking. Then Lelouch scowled. "Quit joking around, C.C."

"If I were joking then I'd be smiling," she replied dryly. "I'm serious, Lelouch."

"One that's impossible," he said with a frown. "And two, even if it were true, then why would you only be bringing it up now? How would you even know anyway?" He briefly considered the fact that C.C. often seemed to know more than she let on. But the damn witch never would explain herself...

The corners of C.C.'s lips slanted slightly downward. Obviously, she didn't enjoy being the recipient of a barrage of questions. Lelouch absorbed this information with the smallest of smirks. "I'm bring it up now because I don't want you to find out later and just give up on everything. I need you alive, remember? That'll probably take a lot more effort on my part if you don't even care yourself anymore." She turned her gaze away, instead staring very intently at the logo blazoned across the lid of her pizza box. "And I know because I was...acquainted...with your mother."

----

"Mission accomplished..." Rolo stated cooly, as he took his place standing in front of the throne-like chair, "V.V.-sama."

The small boy seated in front of him looked up with a smirk. "As expected," V.V. replied, granting his soldier a subtle smile. He looked over the teenager standing before him with lidded eyes, twirling a lock of very long, wavy pale blond hair around his finger. "However..." he drawled, a triumphant smirk spreading across his face, "I think you're losing your touch, Rolo."

"Huh?"

"There," V.V. said, pointing with a thin finger to the cuff of Rolo's right sleeve. A small, dark red splotch marred the clean blue fabric. "You're usually much neater than that. Is something wrong?"

"Of course not," Rolo replied immediately. Though the question itself might have suggested concern, he could tell from the mocking tone of the immortal's voice that no such emotion was present. Almost absentmindedly, he rubbed the stain between his thumb and forefinger, as if that would erase it, but to no avail.

"You should know better than that," V.V. went on, slumping back into his throne with a bored expression that was made much more sinister than it should have been by the dim lighting of the underground room he sat in. "To leave evidence like that, it's very unprofessional. Honestly, you may as well just tell the police that you were the murderer..."

"Of course, " Rolo repeated, nodding if only to end the lecturing. More as a nervous reaction than anything else, he shoved his hand deep into the pocket of his jacket to hide the bloodstain. With that movement came the tiny, almost inaudible sound of crinkling plastic.

As small as it was, at the sound V.V. stopped and eyed Rolo's pocket. With a frown, he asked delicately, "What was that?"

The teenager blinked, his mouth forming a small 'o', and he quickly cast his amethyst eyes to the stone flooring. "Nothing," he replied innocently.

V.V.'s frown deepened. "Rolo..." he said, his voice far too stern and threatening for someone who looked no older than ten years old. "What do you have in your pocket? You know lying is a horrible thing to do..."

With a guilty expression, Rolo drew the item from his pocket. "It's just a piece of candy," he said meekly, opening his hand to display a single sweet in a plastic wrapper.

"And where did you get that?"

"O-on the bus I took, on the Britannian mainland," he stammered. "A lady gave it to me."

V.V. gave him a dubious look. Understandable, though. Rolo had been surprised himself at the time of the incident.

It was an unfamiliar situation to him. As he went to get on a bus that would take him to the hotel where his target had been residing, he'd let an old woman get on before him. It hadn't even really been a conscious act, as he'd been looking up and down the street at the moment to check for any sort of threats, a paranoid habit he'd picked up over years of similar missions. He'd just stepped aside without thinking and let her on in front of him, but she had called him polite. She'd smiled and said he was such a polite young man and given him the piece of candy. Rolo didn't understand, but he had kept the sweet regardless.

Funny that the old woman would call him polite, of all things. Only half an hour after that, he'd shot a politician through the heart without batting an eye.

When V.V. had been silent for a few seconds, Rolo started to return the piece of candy to his pocket. But the cold voice of the immortal boy stopped him.

"Throw it out."

"What?" Rolo frowned. "Why?"

"It could be dangerous. That lady could have poisoned it."

"It...it was just an old woman!"

"Oh come on, Rolo," V.V. said with a smirk. "You of all people should know that appearances can be deceiving. Now make sure you throw that out."

"R-right. Of course." Rolo lowered his head and bit his lip, wincing as if he'd just been slapped.

"Alright, then you're dismissed," the blonde boy said loftily, leaning back into his seat.

"Yes sir." Giving a shallow bow, Rolo turned away, letting out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. He moved for the door, his footsteps echoing in the large, mostly empty room.

V.V.'s voice was like ice. "Oh, and Rolo?"

"Yes?"

"Don't forget," he said. "Everyone lies. There's no one out in the world above you can trust. Am I right?"

His hand again hidden in his pocket, Rolo gripped the piece of candy. The edges of its plastic wrapping scratched at his palm.

"...of course, V.V.-sama."

----

"Anything else you feel like telling me, witch?"

Lelouch now stood in front of C.C., his arms crossed and an extremely displeased expression gracing his face. His laptop and work were forgotten on the desk, abandoned in favor of a much more important matter.

C.C., however, apparently hadn't gotten the notice about just how important it was; she continued lounging on his bed, having traded the pizza box for her Cheese-kun plush. She at least had the decency to keep a serious face. "Not particularly," she said airily, hugging the large yellow blob to her chest.

Lelouch narrowed his eyes. "You chose to wait until now to tell me that you were friends with my mother. How could you keep that a secret from me?"

C.C. simply rolled her eyes. "Please. Marianne and I were hardly 'friends'. Suffice to say, I would not have hung around her so long were it not for the circumstances. That woman had a rather..._overpowering_ personality. She was no more my friend than you are." With a sly smile, she added, "Besides, every woman has her secrets. Be glad I decided to tell you this one."

Scowling, the prince ran his hand through his hair before turning deep purple eyes on the green-haired girl. "Explain. Now. What is this nonsense you're speaking about my sister?"

"I just told you," C.C. answered, "She isn't your sister." She grinned ever so slightly at the frown that formed on his face at these words. "And it's not nonsense."

"It is nonsense," Lelouch insisted. "Nunnally is my sister, she always has been. I mean, I was even there when she was born, I think I would know!"

"Oh?" C.C. purred. "Would you now?"

"Yes," he snapped in response. "And I remember being in the room at the hospital. Everyone had been going on about how much she looked like our father when he was young."

With a triumphant smirk, C.C. sat up, leaning towards Lelouch so that he was forced to take a step back. "And therein lies the truth," she said.

"What do you mean?"

"Tell me, Lelouch..." the witch dragged her words, peering up into his face. "What color are Nunnally's eyes?"

"Blue," he replied at once. "Like my mother's."

Her smirk widening ever so slightly, C.C. went on. "And what color are your father's eyes? If you remember that day at the hospital so clearly, then tell me..." She slid off the bed to her feet with that alien grace of hers, rising to her full height, and while she only just came up to Lelouch's chin, the air of confidence she exuded made her seem twice as tall.

"...what color were that newborn's eyes, Lelouch?"

The prince frowned, closing his own eyes as he recalled the scene.

_His mother laying on a hospital bed, her face etched with the exhaustion of childbirth, her dark bangs sticking to her forehead with sweat. The room was a bright, sterile white that might have been disconcerting if it were not for the group of people crowding it, filling it was celebratory noise and laughter._

_His father had been absent, he remembered, and Schneizel had patiently told him when he'd asked, _"_Father is the emperor; he's too busy to come right now." Even as a small child, an answer like this had seemed unacceptable to Lelouch, but his mother had been perfectly content with the situation, so he didn't push the issue._

_Standing by his mother's bedside, where his father should have been, was a younger Cornelia, always so loyal to the Lady Marianne. Euphemia ha_d _been too young, and since she was not actually related to Marianne, she was forced to wait outside for her sister._

_Apart from his older half-siblings, the room had been full of ladies of the court, the same phony noblewomen that had always gossiped about Marianne behind her back and resented her for being of common birth now congratulating her and pretending to be friendly._

_(Thinking back on that scene, Lelouch vaguely could remember an unfamiliar woman who'd stood in the corner of the room simply looking on. She had been dressed much more plainly than the court ladies, and wore no makeup, but had an exotic beauty and a haughty sort of confidence that made her appear more noble than any of them.)_

_Being so small at the time, Lelouch had been allowed to sit on the edge of the bed so he could see. A bundle laid in_ _his mother's arms, the newborn having already been cleaned of blood and such and wrapped in a soft blanket._

"_Here, Lelouch," Marianne said gently, motioning for her son to come closer. "Say hello to your new little sibling."_

_He complied, leaning in to look. Peering into the infant's face, he found himself staring into wide, curious eyes, lavender in color._

Lelouch blinked himself back into the present, his mouth hanging open slightly. C.C. still stood in front of him, watching him expectantly.

"Purple..." he murmured in disbelief, wondering to himself how he had never noticed the change. Even more strangely, how had his mother never said a word about such a happening? When he glanced back to C.C., obviously waiting for an answer to her question, he admitted, "They were light purple...but, sometimes a baby's eyes change color as they grow up..." He offered the idea rather weakly.

"You're in denial," the witch pointed out, and shook her head.

"But then where did Nunnally come from?" he argued. "Nunnally was always..." he trailed off, unsure of how he wished to finish that statement.

C.C. turned and flopped back onto the bed, again taking up Cheese-kun and examining its smiling face. "Are you really asking that? I thought you were supposed to be a genius..." She gave that annoying little smirk of hers, going on. "The child was just switched for Nunnally soon after being born, probably less than a day or two later. I don't know where Nunnally came from, though since she does still resemble Charles, possibly she came from another of his many conquests. Marianne most likely was geassed to never notice the change."

"But...why? Who did it?"

"Most likely it was your father, Charles," C.C. answered. "He probably had wanted a mole to keep an eye on Marianne and yourself, and then had just been lucky enough to have Nunnally born so close to when your mother gave birth..."

At the mention of the emperor, Lelouch grimaced with distaste. "Not that I doubt he'd do such a thing, but to be using Nunnally as his spy? She can't even see!"

"She wasn't always blind, you remember. And as much as you baby her, she very capable with all her remaining senses."

Lelouch's frown deepened. "Nunnally has always, _always_, been sweet and gentle. I can hardly see her working with someone like my father. She even said herself, her greatest wish is for a kind world!"

"People lie, Lelouch. They pretend, and-"

"Nunnally doesn't lie!" he snapped, scowling. "I've had enough of your stories! I know you just love to mess with me, but you've gone too far this time!"

"Lelouch..." the witch tried, only to be cut off as he stormed out, slamming the door behind him. She stared at the smooth wooden surface of the door for a moment before sighing and looking back to Cheese-kun, speaking aloud.

"It seems your son has inherited that stubbornness of yours...oh, calm down, you know I was joking about that, it would be difficult to explain our _friendship_ to him, isn't that right...Marianne?"

----

Nunnally's bedroom was more than just a little illogical. Its walls were decorated with colorful paintings and photographs, the bedspread an expensive, elaborately embroidered thing, and a large, ornate mirror hung over her dresser, all of these being rather unnecessary and silly things to put in a blind girl's room. Just further proof of how Lelouch doted on his little sister.

Said girl sat in her wheelchair at her desk, dressed already in her nightclothes, her long hair still damp from her bath. Her sensitive ears picked up the sounds of the maid, Sayoko, bustling around the kitchen several rooms away as she prepared dinner.

Smiling to herself, Nunnally made another fold in the square piece of paper. She made neat little creases with deft fingers, a crane slowly forming before her. "Forty-two..." she counted to herself, adding it to a large pile next to her desk and picking up another sheet of origami paper. As she made the first fold, swiping her finger along it to create the crease, a loud slam from down the hall startled her and caused her to jump, slicing her finger on that edge of paper.

Giving a small cry of pain, Nunnally quickly put the digit in her mouth. She tasted blood and winced at the metallic taste. A pause, and behind her she heard the door open, the familiar, now hurried footsteps entering.

"Nunnally?" came Lelouch's voice, practically dripping with concern. "Is something wrong?" He knelt beside her wheelchair, and she withdrew her finger, giving her brother a sweet smile.

"Ah, it's fine, Onii-sama," she chirped. "I just gave myself a paper cut, is all..."

The brunette boy gave a relieved sigh and a lighthearted chuckled. "Oh, is that all?" he asked. "We should still clean that up, though." He spoke even as he opened one of her desk drawers and retrieved a first-aid kit from it. Heaven forbid his precious little sister's room be ill-equipped to keep her safe in all scenarios.

Nunnally giggled. "Of course, Onii-sama." she felt him gently take her finger and wipe it clean before beginning to adhere a bandage to the wound. After a moment's silence, she asked him, "Is everything alright?"

"Hmm? Why do you ask?"

"I heard you slamming your door," Nunnally said with a small frown. "Did something happen?"

Hesitating only for a moment, Lelouch forced a cheerful tone for his sister's benefit. "Oh, I was just talking to C.C. before. On the phone," he added quickly, remembering that the green-haired girl was supposed to be "home". If only.

"Did you two have an argument?"

"Not really," the prince replied, as he began to put the first-aid kit away. "She was just teasing me and I overreacted, that's all."

Nunnally persisted. "What did she say? I can't think of what could have made you that angry..."

"It's nothing. C.C. was just talking nonsense."

"Onii-sama..."

The blind girl gave a little pout, and Lelouch mentally cursed his inability to deny her. "It was just silly stuff, really. C.C. just going on with some ridiculous story about you not really being my sister. She likes to make stuff up, is all."

If Nunnally's eyes were open to begin with, Lelouch was sure she would have blinked. Her mouth hung open just a little in surprise. Then suddenly, almost disconcertingly so, she smiled sweetly.

"Ah, I see. C.C.-san just likes to make stuff up," she repeated, giving a little nod as if in agreement.

"A-aa," Lelouch stammered. Why did that smile make him uncomfortable all of a sudden? As long as he could remember, nothing could put him at ease like one of Nunnally's smiles. Working to keep his voice steady, he said, "That's right. It's just one of C.C.'s pranks, just her trying to make me look stupid. But I didn't fall for it."

The short silence that followed was oddly tense, and then Nunnally's syrupy sweet voice, "You and C.C.-san really are similar. You both like to make up stories."

"Eh?" the prince questioned. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, you know!" she answered, and though her tone was cheerful it was laced with an icy chill. "Like those stories you tell me, lying about what you're doing when you're out being Zero!"

Lelouch felt his blood run cold.

"Isn't that right, Onii-sama?"

* * *

I think I remember why I gave up on writing fanfiction for two years. My hands hurt after typing so much... T_T Much longer chapter this time, hope you guys are like me and like long chapters, or my fingers have gotten sore for absolutely nothing! XD;

Ah, I love V.V. He's so wonderfully creepy XD And from here on out, Nunnally is going to become rather OOC for the purposes of plot, so please enjoy the evil!Nunally =D

Please review, it always makes me so very happy to see those little review alerts in my inbox~ ^^ And I hope you all look forward to next week's chapter!


	3. Area 11 Revelations

Thanks everyone who's reviewed and favorited and everything so far, honestly, nothing makes me happier than opening my inbox and seeing those review alerts XD And I appreciate criticism as well! As one reviewer pointed out to me, the Lelouch side of this might feel rather rushed right now. Sorry about that, I'm working to make that a bit more subtle, just trying to speed things along as quickly as possible so we can finally get to the LuluRolo confrontation so many of you have told me you're dying to see ^^ The pacing will slow and even out after that point, I promise!

And for those who were wondering, this fic begins starting between episodes 16 and 17 of the first season. Just clearing that up.

**Disclaimer:** Don't own Geass, ect.

* * *

For a moment, Lelouch felt frozen in place, his mouth agape as he processed what he'd just heard. It was only when he felt Nunnally slide her hand into his that he snapped out of his stupor and forced a smile.

"What are you talking about?" he said gently, soothingly. "C.C. has been telling you silly stories again, has–"

"You're lying, Onii-sama."

Cut off in his denial, the brunette boy could only blink in shock as his little sister gave him that unnerving cold smile again. "I've gotten very good at telling when people are lying," she went on, giving his hand a light squeeze to illustrate his point. "Of course, I get a lot of practice with you..."

"I-I wouldn't lie to you!" Lelouch sputtered, aware that he was becoming desperate. This wasn't supposed to happen, she wasn't supposed to...

"You're still lying, even now." Nunnally gave a little sigh, shaking her head. "You really must think I'm stupid..."

"O-of course I don't, Nunna–"

"Liar!"

The volume the small girl had shouted at left Lelouch a little more than stunned. Never before had he ever heard her raise her voice. Gone was her chillingly sweet smile, now replaced with a frown and a furrowing between her brows.

"You're terrible, Onii-sama..." Nunnally stated quietly. "To have been Zero all this time...and then even when you've been revealed, you keep lying about it? How cruel..."

"No, but..." Lelouch protested, until he spied her hands fisted in her nightgown's skirt in anger. His voice dropped to a weak, pained whisper. "Nunnally, I've done it all for you...Nunnally...!"

Yet another of those horrible, tense silences that had fallen in and out of their conversation followed. The prince watched his sister's face, gripping the arms of her wheelchair in anxiety. Then she let her head hang down, so her hair fell like a curtain around her face.

"Onii-sama," she pronounced delicately., the syllables sharp on her tongue. Lelouch found himself leaning closer, biting his lower lip.

"When did I ever ask for that?!" She snapped so suddenly that Lelouch stumbled backwards in surprise. "How dare you use me to justify your sins!"

"No...N-Nunally..."

A sharp knock on the door broke in before either of the siblings could continue, and Sayoko opened it a crack, sticking her head into the room.

"Dinner is now ready," the maid said, glancing between the two as if wondering just what she had interrupted. Surely they had not been arguing, for she'd never seen a pair of siblings that got along so well as those these...

In an instant, Nunnally raised her head and gave the Japanese woman a grateful smile. "Thank you, Sayoko-san!" Already she was wheeling her chair towards the door. But in the doorway, she paused an tilted her head back towards Lelouch's direction. "Aren't you coming, Onii-sama?"

The prince looked at her in disbelief, before gritting his teeth and standing. "No," he said, perhaps a bit too tersely. "I'm not hungry."

"Oh?" Nunnally questioned, a terrible little smile on her face, turned away so that Sayoko could not see it. "You aren't lying, are you?"

Seeing her grin, he looked away. "No. I've lost my appetite.

----

C.C. didn't even look up as Lelouch reentered the room, this time carefully closing the door to avoid the noise it would make. With a sigh, he collapsed into the chair in front of his desk. He rested his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands, a picture of defeat. Minutes passed and the room remained silent, until in exasperation her lowered his hands and glared at the green-haired girl sprawled across his bed. "Well?"

"Well what?" she replied cooly, keeping her eyes on the plush toy in her arms, the large smile stitched onto it's face.

"Aren't you going to say 'I told you so'?"

Amber eyes turned to look at him, and Lelouch was surprised to see pity in her gaze. "Even I'm not cruel enough to mock you over this matter," she said. "The person you trusted more than anyone else in the world has betrayed you. Nothing in the world is as painful as that. It's enough to leave you reluctant to trust anyone else ever again."

From her pained tone, Lelouch had to wonder if she spoke from personal experience.

"The question is," C.C. continued, sitting up and eyeing him warily. "What will you do now?"

Lelouch was silent.

"Will you endure and continue being Zero? Or will you simply give it up now?"

A pause and an intake of breath, then, "I've already come too far to give up now. Too many people...Clovis, Shirley and her family, Mao...I've hurt too many people. To stop now would be an insult to them. And besides," he gave the witch a weak smile. "The Black Knights trust Zero. How could I betray them like that?"

C.C. shot him a smirk. "Good answer."

It was barely a moment before he was frowning again, however. "But," he said, rather pessimistically. "Nunnally knows that I'm Zero. And after the little talk we just had, I doubt she'd be willing to keep any secrets for me. I can't use the geass on her..."

"Can't, or won't?"

"Can't." Lelouch scowled at her and shook his head. "I need eye contact, and it's not as if I can pry her eyelids open."

"Yes, I doubt you'd have the physical skill needed to overpower a blind, crippled little girl."

Lelouch flipped her off.

"Either way," C.C. ignored him and went on, "We don't know whether she's told the Emperor yet," At the thought, Lelouch grimaced and gave an audible groan, and C.C. continued to ignore him. "But regardless, I don't think there's any chance that Zero's identity will be revealed."

Lelouch contemplated this for a moment before nodding. "Aa. At least, I doubt anyone associated with the Britannian empire would make my identity public. If the population found out that Zero was a Britannian prince, it's likely there would be riots, and the Empire could loose its credibility."

With that, he spun his chair back to facing his desk, flipping open his laptop. Within moments, he was typing away, speaking as he worked. "I'll just have to make some adjustments to my plans for the future, but otherwise nothing has changed."

"Adjustments?" C.C. couldn't manage to hide the tinge of curiosity in her voice.

The raven-haired boy nodded. "Mm. Production of that airship Rakshata had been thinking up will be put into effect, and we'll speed up the process of moving our base of operations outside of Japan. I'll need to you go back to the Chinese Federation for a bit for that...and I may have to reveal my identity to the Black Knights. If Britannia actually were so stupid as to give away who's behind Zero's mask, it'd go over a lot better if I told them myself first and did damage control while it's easily manageable."

C.C. watched soundlessly as Lelouch typed, her lips pressed together in a pitying expression. She put her Cheese-kun plush aside and stood, taking careful steps over until she was standing behind his chair. Wordlessly, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, and he froze, his hands paused in midair over the keys. After a moment, he leaned back into the embrace, knowing better than to question a rare act of kindness from the witch.

Her tone was unusually gentle. "You're trying so hard to keep moving forward, aren't you? Even when hurting like this..."

"Shut up." C.C. ignored his rude tone, and the single tear running down his cheek.

She held him like that, leaning her cheek against his head, for a few minutes. Eventually his voice broke the silence, weary and more pained than Lelouch wished he sounded.

"C.C....what did they do with that child...with my real sibling?" It didn't sound like he retained much hope at all for that infant's life. Likely, he didn't want to give himself false hopes only to have them dashed immediately. The green-haired girl allowed herself a small smile.

"Don't sound so depressed. They didn't kill it."

At her words, Lelouch perked up very quickly. "Really?" he asked, trying not to sound too anxious. "Then, where...?"

C.C.'s face fell slightly. Apparently she didn't much enjoy being the one to tell him the next part.

"With the person who murdered Marianne."

His face fell to match her's as she continued.

"With the Emperor's older brother, the head of the Geass Cult. The immortal, V.V."

----

V.V. sneezed.

Rolo cast the tiny blonde a strange look. "Do you have a cold, V.V.-sama?" V.V. scowled and shook his head, as an older man heavily covered in robes hurriedly handed him a tissue. Rolo almost found the sight amusing, one of the more elderly leaders among those running the Cult falling over himself to tend to a prepubescent-looking boy.

"I don't get sick," he insisted, taking the tissue and wiping his nose. "Someone must me talking about me..."

"Huh?"

"What, you've never heard of that before, Rolo?" The teen obviously hadn't, given his confused expression, and he shook his head. "It's a Japanese superstition," V.V. explained. "They say that when you sneeze, someone somewhere is talking about you. Given the current situation in Japan, with the emergence of Zero and the Black Knights and such, you would do well to know about these sort of things. No doubt we'll start getting requests for assassinations over there soon, all the most important people in the world are heading to Japan now..." V.V. trailed off, the current fighting and this Zero person apparently being topics he needed to consider carefully.

Rolo couldn't really say he cared much. At least the ship rides to Japan would be much shorter than the ones to Britannia he was normally forced to take.

* * *

Gah. Another short-ish chapter. Sorry about that, next one is a long one though, so look forward to that (though my hands are already sore just thinking of typing that one...ugh). Bit of C.C./Lulu in this chapter for all those fans (yes, I adore C.C. as well =D).

Cookies to anyone who can name the OVA trilogy this chapter title is referencing~! And as always, reviews are loved greatly! Make my day, please~!


	4. Dream a Dream

Thanks everyone for the continued reading/faving/reviewing! I appreciate it a lot! And this chapter is dedicated to my friend Lauren, who was the only one to catch the reference in the previous chapter title (and it was a parody of the Tsubasa Resevoir Chronicles OVAs, "Tokyo Revelations").

I disclaim! Enjoy!

* * *

Rolo rarely dreamt.

He considered himself fairly lucky in this aspect. After all, what would he dream of if dreams came to him more often? No doubt his sleep would be plagued with nightmares, visits from the countless people he'd killed (not that this bothered his conscious at all in his waking hours).

Those assassinations were his life; he was paid well for them, he was able to continue living each day because he carried them out, and someday, overuse of his geass on one of those missions would no doubt kill him. With so little else making up his daily activities, Rolo was actually surprised his lifestyle of killing didn't follow him to his sleep.

Even more oddly, the few dreams that Rolo did have were nothing so familiar. When they came to him, those visions were of long-distant memories.

In those, he was very small, far smaller than he could ever remember being, and he was warm as he was held against someone's breast. A loud heartbeat that wasn't his own sounded against his ear, and a dull, happy murmur made up the background noise; he couldn't understand what was being said, but he knew it was a cheery sort of talk. The light was so bright that it stung his eyes, a blur of loud colors and sounds and smells assaulting his immature senses. And when a kind shadow leant over him, blocking out the light and soothing his overpowered vision, he found himself staring into a pair of large, curious violet eyes.

Those dreams did not leave Rolo feeling encouraged or content, as one might expect. Each morning afterwards he'd wake up only feeling uncomfortable and unnerved. He wanted to simply remind himself that dreams were often just meaningless images and fragments of thought and feeling pieced together by the subconscious. He wanted to believe that his dreams were nothing important, but his logic wouldn't let him see them as anything but forgotten memories.

After all, how could his mind slip the feeling of being held into a dream when he could not remember ever experiencing such a gesture? And each time it felt so real that he'd wake up surprised to find himself alone.

V.V. hated lies, and those that lied. He often told this to Rolo and anyone else who would listen, often lectured on about how terrible it was to lie. But Rolo suspected that the immortal was a hypocrite, that he was being lied to by V.V. himself.

He was sure that the arms holding him in his dreams must have been his mother, and he must have had, at some point early in his life, a family that wanted him, the caused all that happy chatter that haunted his dreams. But when he asked his master, V.V. always told him that he had no family, that his mother had died in childbirth, that she'd been alone and that Rolo would have died as an infant if V.V. hadn't so kindly taken him in.

"But V.V.-sama," Rolo had once argued. "I can remember my mother, at least just a little." At least he could remember her body's warmth when he slept. So he wasn't lying.

"Don't be stupid," the blonde boy had replied, frowning. "It's impossible to have any memory of when you were that young. And it's impossible to remember things that didn't happen."

"But–"

"Rolo," V.V. chided, "Are you really so ungrateful to the person who took you in and kept you alive all these years?"

"N-no. Of course not..."

"Good. Now it's late, so you should just be a good boy and go to bed."

"Yes, sir."

Rolo sank into a bow before taking his leave, heading back to his small room to retire for the night, and for some reason, he was confident that he would dream again that night.

And he was correct.

----

"Lulu, no sleeping on the job!"

Lelouch awoke with a start as he felt the familiar soft thwack of Milly's current paperwork rolled up and used to smack him over the head. Groaning, he sat up in his seat, rubbing a sore on his side from where the sharp edge of the table had been pressing against him as he slumbered. Over him stood the student council president, her hands resting against curvy hips.

"Really, Lulu," Milly went on, shaking her head and tossing a lock of blond hair over her shoulder. "If you're gonna fall asleep in school, then save it for class! No snoozing during your student council duties!"

"He slept all through class, too!" Rivalz chimed in, only to be quickly shut up as Lelouch shot him a glare.

With a sigh, the prince addressed Milly. "Sorry, Madam President. I just haven't gotten much sleep the last few days..."

From his own seat across the table, Suzaku cast Lelouch a concerned look. "Are you alright?" he asked, worry clouding his emerald eyes. "Don't tell me it's schoolwork that's keeping you up..."

"Oooor..." Milly drawled with a grin, "Is it something else – or, some_one_ else that you're staying awake for?" Her tone and lecherous smirk betrayed the rather suggestive ideas filling her mind. "Ooh, I bet you must be jealous, Shirley!"

"M-Madam President!" the orange-haired girl stammered, her face burning red. Luckily for her, or perhaps unluckily, Lelouch didn't seem to notice or care.

In her own seat, Kallen rolled her eyes. "He's just been busy with other stuff, is all. Apparently so much he's been forgetting to sleep..."

"Oooh, so you're in on it, too!? How scandalous!"

"I-it's nothing like that!" Kallen protested, her face turning a crimson to rival that of her hair. "I-I just know because we're working on a project together...t-that's all..."

Milly seemed disappointed. "Oh, is that all?" she looked to Lelouch, who flashed her a charming smile.

"Oh, yes," he said nonchalantly, nodding to Kallen. "She's been a huge help to me, really." Kallen just scowled at him, then lowered her head and went back to work on a sheet of paperwork for the clubs' budget, scribbling furiously with her mechanical pencil.

Lelouch resisted the urge to sigh. The girl was apparently still angry at him. When he'd revealed his identity two days earlier to the Black Knights, Kallen had been one of his biggest supporters, and a large factor in convincing the more doubtful members that they could trust Lelouch as Zero, Britannian prince or not (and no one really wanted to oppose the angry redhead with a dangerous mecha at her command). But as loyal as she was to Zero, it didn't stop her from being mad at Lelouch for lying to her originally. He did find it somewhat amusing, however, that Kallen seemed to separate "Zero" and "Lelouch" into two separate entities.

Suzaku clearly didn't notice Kallen's mood, as he gave the pair an enthusiastic grin. "It's weird for Lelouch to be so into something that isn't chess," he said, chuckling to himself. "What kind of project is it?"

The prince laid his head back on the desk, settling in to get a few more minutes of sleep. "Nothing special," he said, smirking. "Just a game..."

Kallen stood up abruptly, her chair making a loud scraping sound as she pushed it back. "I'm done here," she snapped, shooting Lelouch a glare. She began gathering her things while the others gave her confused looks, asking what the problem was.

Lelouch ignored it, however. He knew what set her off when she gave him that pissed expression after his 'game' comment. The expression that clearly read, _'We aren't just pawns in your game!'_ He sighed against the fabric of his shirt sleeve. Obviously, just being on the same side as she was wasn't enough to save one from the wrath of Kozuki Kallen.

He heard her footsteps retreating towards the door, her heels making sharp click against the flooring. The sound stopped right around when she should have reached the exit, and he looked up as she exclaimed, "N-Nunnally!"

"Hello, Kallen!" the blind girl chirped, wheeling herself into the room. While the other members of the Student Council greeted her enthusiastically, Kallen and Lelouch exchanged a glance. Details of his personal life were not something he would so casually reveal to the Black Knights, but he'd found himself forced to tell at least just the most important members – Kallen included – the situation with his sister. As a result, the redhead appeared uncertain of how he would have her act.

However, as luck would have it, there was no need for her to talk at all. Nunnally spoke while Suzaku took the handles of her wheelchair and moved her to the table.

"Did Onii-sama tell you all yet?" she asked sweetly. Lelouch felt himself tense slightly in anticipation, ready to deny any claims that might hurt him. He wasn't prepared for what she did say, though.

"Tell us what, Nunna?" Milly asked, perching herself on the edge of a chair. Nunnally gave an innocent little giggle.

"I'm transferring to a school on the Britannian mainland tomorrow!"

At her announcement there came a chorus of "What?" and "Huh?" throughout the room, save for Lelouch who instead choked on his own saliva in surprise. Shirley, of course, immediately asked if he was alright, but Nunnally answered for him.

"Onii-sama is still upset about it," she said, lacing her voice with sadness for her 'dear older brother'.

"N-Nunnally," Nina finally piped up, turning away from her computer in the corner of the room to face the group. "Y-you're going to the mainland a-alone?" She worried at one of her messy pigtails as if the very idea scared her,

Nunnally nodded. "Yes, well, we found some distant relatives of ours who offered to let us come live with them, and there's a very good school over there. I thought I'd be able to benefit more by going, but Onii-sama said he'd rather stay here. Isn't that right, Onii-sama?"

Lelouch barely managed to catch the pass. "A-ah, that's right." He attempted a smile without much success, and hoped his classmates would read the strained expression as a result of sadness rather than anger. "I just can't believe my cute little sister is leaving me like this..." He couldn't help the slight hint of venom that leaked into his voice, but luckily it looked like only Nunnally noticed it.

She flashed him a grin. "It is rather horrible of me, isn't it?" she said, and feigned a pout that made the others' hearts melt. "Especially after you've been such a good brother to me all these years." The Student Council didn't seem to notice her veiled sarcasm either.

"It's alright," Lelouch soothed. "I just want what's best for you. As I always have."

A tense silence followed in which Milly, Shirley, Rivalz and Nina finally seemed to catch on to the mood and gave the siblings an odd look. Kallen shot Lelouch a warning glance, biting her lower lip as she eyed the back of Nunnally's head, as if wondering when she'd become so malicious, wondering what to do if she was to say anything that would give her and Lelouch away. It wasn't as if she could just punch the girl if she tried to blow their cover. For once, Kallen was confronted with a situation where brute force couldn't save her.

Again, however, the nature of the atmosphere eluded Suzaku, as he relaxed the scene by himself, apparently by accident. He gave Nunnally a sad look, taking her hand. "I can't believe you're going to be gone," he mourned. She laid her other hand over his with soft words.

"I can count of you to _take care_ of Onii-sama, right Suzaku? And who knows? Maybe someday your job with the military will let you come over to my side!"

Lelouch clenched his fists under the desk, catching the double meaning in her words. _You can't have Suzaku_, he thought. _I might have wanted him to be your knight before, but if it's come to this, then I won't lose him to you, Nunnally!_ Standing, he began gathering his bags, and Milly gave him a questioning glance.

"Hm? Where are you going, Lulu?"

"Nunnally and I have to go home," the prince explained as he took up the handles of her wheelchair. "After all, she's got a lot of packing to do for tomorrow. Right?"

Nunnally nodded, her voice syrupy sweet. "That's right, Onii-sama."

----

It was harder than Lelouch had thought it would be, simply leaving the Student Council room. Everyone wanted to give Nunnally hugs and warm wishes, saying they'd be sure to see her again someday. Still, five minutes later, he was walking his 'sister' down the hall towards their home.

It was a short while before he managed to speak. "You're leaving just like that then?"

"Oh course," Nunnally replied casually, her chilling smile returned. "Just like that. There's no point in me hanging around here any longer if my cover's been blown."

Lelouch winced at her careless tone. "But that's it? All that time...all these years I've taken care of you..." His voice threatened to crack, and he struggled to keep it steady. "Does all that mean nothing to you?"

A pause, and then Nunnally laughed. Not the sweet, tinkering giggle that had always put a smile on his face, but a cruel, mocking sound that made him tremble. He could hardly believe that it was the small girl in front of him making that sound.

"You're much more naive than I'd thought, Onii-sama." She reached back over her shoulder and patted one of his shaking hands. As if he were a child. "Father told me the truth as soon as I was old enough to understand. I've never thought of you as my brother. Any silly delusions I might have had of that 'family', with you and Mother, he rid me of those quickly. If I could have, I would have ended this years ago, but Father wanted me to keep playing this little game..."

Lelouch's steps slowed to a stop as she spoke. The wheelchair handle's were cold under his palms.

"You're really pathetic, did you know that, Onii-sama?"

He couldn't manage to look at the girl seated in front of him, only stare straight ahead blankly.

"You act like you're being so noble and kind, but you're just being selfish..."

His heartbeat sounded louder than he could ever remember it, pounding in his ears, and he wondered if she could hear it too, if she would mock him about that next.

"...always keeping me close, never letting me out of your sight. Don't give me any of that 'taking care of me' stupidity..."

Never before had Lelouch wished his sister, or rather, this girl who'd pretended to be his sister, was lying so badly.

"...you're just afraid to be alone, aren't you?"

_Nunnally...!_

It seemed almost a full minute that the dark haired boy remained there, frozen with despair. Then he felt the skin of Nunnally's finger's brush against his own, as she pushed his hands off the handles of her chair. "If you aren't going to push, then I'll just go myself," she snapped. "After all, I still have much packing to do." She gave that chilling laugh again, and then taking up the controls of her chair she wheeled herself away from Lelouch and towards their home.

Lelouch stayed put, waiting until Nunnally was long out of sight before slumping against the wall of the hallway. His breathing was shallow and his eyes stung with the threat of tears. He realized with some surprise that he hadn't cried since his mother's death. That might have changed, had his cell phone not rung right then.

He took a breath to compose himself, and took the phone from his pocket. He glanced at the caller I.D. and seeing Kallen's name there, the flipped the phone open.

"Yes, Q-1?"

"Zero," the redhead's voice came over the line, and after a slight hesitation, "No, Lelouch...are you alright?"

"Of course," he replied, as if it were a silly question, but he couldn't help the little smile that crossed his face. At least Kallen couldn't see it. No need to let her know he appreciated her checking up on him. "Don't worry, my personal life with not be allowed to interfere with the Black Knights."

"That's not what I..." She cut herself off, and Lelouch heard an intake of breath from her end. "We'll support you if you need help, you know. You're allowed to have personal problems too. That's just one of the benefits of showing yourself to be human to the rest of us."

Lelouch smirked into the phone. "Glad to heard that, Q-1. Because I actually might be needing some help from you soon."

"Eh? Help with what?"

He paused for just a moment, gripping the plastic casing of his cell phone. "I'm going to take back what is mine."

* * *

Moar evil!Nunnally for yous! And finally some fun with the Student Council~! As much as I might poke fun at some of them (Shirley, Suzaku, Rivalz, cough cough) I love them all to death, so no worries about any real character bashing. And some hints of Kallen/Lulu for those fans. Love for the tsundere 3

Thanks for reading, look forward to next week's chapter! Review please, it makes me so ridiculously happy, you've got no idea XDDD


	5. One Step Closer

Once again, thanks to those that've reviewed and everything! It really encourages me to write more when I get feedback like that, little notes and suchs that let me know that people are reading and enjoying this.

This chapter gets dedicated to GoGothGirl, whose continuous long, in-depth reviews always put a smile on my face =D Thanks so much~!

**Disclaimer:** Don't own Geass.

* * *

Due to their popularity with the people of Japan, it was fairly easy for the Black Knights to remain hidden from the Britannian army. Many Japanese were willing to lend their services to those that were fighting for their freedom, and would provide space for the Knights' use upon request.

And when the landowners weren't quite so agreeable, well, Lelouch's geass helped there.

As a result, the terrorist group had quite the number of warehouses, bases and Knightmare hangars throughout Japan, most of these being in the Tokyo area. This way, they could house and construct their technology, and so long as the secret remained kept, Britannia would not find those bases until long after they'd been abandoned.

Lelouch stood to the side in one of those hidden hangars, this one concealed in a warehouse on the outskirts of Tokyo, watching with deep purple eyes the work going on all around him.

His mask was held loosely at his side as he took a moment to appreciate the rare break he had, what with all his subordinates too busy working on their latest project to pester him with questions. Though his identity as both a highschool boy and a Britannian prince was now common knowledge among the Knights, he typically would have kept his mask on to encourage them to keep calling him Zero. It was mostly to help avoid any mishaps that could occur if they got used to calling him Lelouch, like accidentally using his real name in less knowledgeable company. For this reason, Tamaki had been entirely banned from saying his name.

But now he allowed himself a reprieve and a breath of fresh air, air that wasn't being filtered first through his mask. The hangar was hot from the enclosed space, the amount of people and the blowtorches many of them used, so no one could blame him for taking advantage of his moment of freedom and removing that overheating mask for a bit.

Tugging down even the black fabric that covered the lower half of his face, the prince watched as Rakshata, off her couch for once, bossed around a group of newbie soldiers, making sure they made no mistake in putting together her latest creation.

The Ikaruga, an enormous airship that would take advantage of the experimental flight abilities of the seventh generation Knightmare frames. The ship was so large that they had to use their largest warehouse-hangar and modify the doors to allow it to exit towards the nearby sea as easily and stealthily as possible. Avoiding detection in this matter was as important as the building of the airship itself. The technology was quite a bit ahead of anything Britannia had together yet, so the surprise would be to their advantage as well. Much of the technology being used in the Ikaruga's production had not been extensively tested yet, but Lelouch trusted Rakshata's genius enough to work with that.

Across the hangar, Tamaki dropped the piece he'd been carrying, and Rakshata proceeded to chew him out brutally for possibly scratching a piece of her newest "baby". Lelouch allowed himself a smile at the Japanese man's expense.

"Having fun?"

He turned at the familiar cool voice, only mildly surprised to see C.C. standing there, still dressed formally in a blazer and knee-length skirt.

"Aa. How was China?" Lelouch asked while nodding. The green-haired girl scowled, crossing her arms.

"I really hate those Eunuchs," she said, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "They can somehow manage to flirt and make disgustingly lewd suggestions towards an attractive female even whilst turning down any offers of becoming allies. I mean, they don't even have–"

"They said no?" Lelouch cut her off with a frown, and C.C. rolled her amber eyes, shrugging.

"The Eunuchs want nothing to do with the Black Knights. They value their neutrality as a country, and their power as the leaders of that country, far too much to be making any deals that would risk turning Britannia's eye on them."

"We have no allies in the Chinese Federation, then?" Lelouch frowned. This would be an irritating setback...

"I didn't say that, did I now?" C.C. flashed him a triumphant smile. "I managed to speak with a man named Li Xingke while I was there. He and his followers are loyal to the Empress Tianze and wish to be rid of the Eunuchs and the threat from Britannia. For a while they've been searching for a method to begin a coup d'etat. He agreed in assisting us in setting up a new main base on that island you were looking at off the Chinese coast. According to him, the Eunuchs spend most of their time cooped up in the capital, so it will be simple to keep our presence hidden from them."

"And of the Geass Cult?"

C.C. nodded. "He said he'll being sending reports of any unaccounted use of electricity of supply trucks heading to unknown locations. If the Cult is in China as V.V. told me, we should be able to find it within the week."

Lelouch smirked in response. "It seems luck is on our side, then."

"They ask only for our assistance in removing the Eunuch's from power, and that we will become their allies once they've set up a new government."

"Easily done. We have nothing to worry about."

For a minute or two they were silent, watching on in amusement as Chiba, flustered under Tohdoh's gaze, nearly tripped over a stray pipe.

It was again C.C. that spoke first, her tone wary.

"Are you sure you're prepared to face V.V.?" she asked, eyeing him with that detached expression of hers. "The geass won't work on him, he's as immortal as I am...is it really worth it to risk making an enemy of him just for some kid you've never met, just because you happen to be related to them?"

Lelouch didn't look at her as he spoke, instead admiring the hard labor being put in by his soldiers. "I was going to face him sooner or later anyway. He killed my mother, remember? I want my revenge." He wiped his forehead with a gloved hand, grimacing at the sweat that collected on the fabric. "And don't I have an obligation to my own blood?"

"Not necessarily," C.C. pointed out.

"Then if not because we're related," he went on, "Then simply because I want to do this right this time. What I've done all these years as Nunnally's brother...I must have failed somehow. I screwed up somewhere along the line. If I'd done my job better then maybe things wouldn't have ended up this way..."

C.C. snorted. "Oh please," she said, shaking her head, the ends of bright green strands of hair swishing around her waist with the motion. "You're possibly the most doting brother I've ever seen in all my many years of existence. What happened with Nunnally isn't your fault."

Scanning over Lelouch for a moment, the witch asked, "Are you just lonely?"

"How could I be lonely when you insist on hanging around constantly?"

"You aren't likely to find a new Nunnally in this sibling of yours, especially after they've spent the last fourteen years with V.V. That would screw anyone up."

"I'm not looking for a 'new Nunnally'," the prince retorted, frowning. "Just..."

"Just," C.C. continued for him, "You feel guilty and lost without the little sister you've been fighting for all along and hope that, if you can retrieve your blood sibling, you'll be able to find a new reason to live."

Lelouch winced at the painfully accurate accusation. "Not in so many words, perhaps..."

"I doubt that child wants to be Nunnally's replacement."

"Not a replacement," he said firmly. "No one can replace Nunnally. This is just...I have to do this."

"Do as you wish." C.C. turned on a heel, starting away from him. "But you should be aware; just because you're all set to devote yourself to someone doesn't mean they're ready to accept that." With that, she strode away, intent on changing into something more comfortable, and likely, more revealing.

----

Rolo hadn't thrown the candy away.

It gave him an odd little thrill, disobeying V.V. for once. And while part of him was terrified of the consequences should he be found out, the larger part said that V.V. was just being paranoid and everything would be fine.

Even though he convinced himself of this, Rolo hadn't dared take the sweet out until his was safely in his small room, the door closed and the covers on his bed pulled up over his head.

He listened for any approaching footsteps, fearful for a moment of being caught, then chided himself for being childish. V.V. never came to the dorms himself, and the various researchers or Cult elders he'd send to retrieve Rolo had learned to knock first, least he slit their throats.

Slowly, he opened the plastic wrapping, wincing at the crinkling sound it made and wondering if V.V. would come swooping down on him in fury. When nothing happened for a full minute. The immortal's paranoia must have been rubbing off on him.

He hesitated just for a moment before taking a breath and popping the piece of candy into his mouth. Instantly the flavor hit his tongue, sweet and fruity. Cherry, the wrapper had said. Rolo couldn't remember the last time he'd tasted something so sweet. Most of the meals he was given in the Cult were rather bland, and on the rare occasion that he was able to buy something for himself while on an assignment, he typically just picked something healthy our of habit.

He sucked on the treat, closing his eyes and savoring the flavor. Slowly, it melted away, shrinking little by little over the passing minutes til nothing remained but the taste on his lips.

Laying back on his mattress, Rolo wondered if he'd die. Perhaps V.V. was right, and it really was poisoned. How long would he have before he stopped breathing? Would it hurt? Rarely was it that he felt pain, largely due to his geass. No one could touch him, save V.V., who'd taken advantage of that only a few times years ago, before Rolo had smartened up and learned to just do as the immortal said without complaint. The only hurt that came again and again was in his heart. The straining feeling there that came when he overused his geass, leaving him gasping for breath and at times unconscious.

The was another ache in his heart, but this one was always present, and he couldn't even put a name to it or determine its cause, so he'd simply gotten used to it and learned to live with it.

Rolo laid there for almost an hour. When there was no sudden pain, no fire in his veins for shortness of breath or clouded thinking, he allowed himself a tiny smirk, to celebrate this rare victory against his immortal master, albeit a victory that the tiny blonde would never know of, with any luck.

A knock at the door made Rolo jump, and he quickly stashed the wrapper in the gap between the wall and his thin mattress, before admitting the visitor. Today's messenger was one of the scientists in the research department, a jumpy 20-something year old man who checked Rolo's hands for weapons before speaking.

"It's t-time for your tests," the man stammered, and Rolo grimaced. He held a strong distaste for the weekly testing, in which he was hooked up to a large machine that buzzed and hummed all around him, getting prodded and inspected by various researchers, all apparently to check on the progression of his geass. But they were always disappointed, for Rolo's geass showed no signs of evolving or getting any stronger than it already was.

No wonder V.V. always called him a failure.

* * *

Ow, my hands...I fear when the chapters will get even longer... T_T

Oh yeah, anyone read about/hear the new Sound Episode? Homolust galore and SuzaLulu kissing? =D Yes plz.

Review please! It feeds my soul! And next chapter: the encounter you've all been waiting for! XD


	6. Purple Haze

I apologise wholeheartedly for missing last week's update. My computer appeared to have died completely, and the thought of having lost my compter caused me to have a panic attack. Luckily, however, my depression was cured by a marathon reading of Fruits Basket. Shoujo manga saves lives, trufax.

I did manage to save my computer (Huzzah!), but a number of other incidents, including a high fever this morning left me unable to update for a week. In reality, this chapter is actually getting updated after midnight, so technically it's on Monday and not Sunday, a fact which is irritating me greatly... .

**A short synopsis of the story so far:** _After a conversation with C.C. and confirmation with Nunnally, Lelouch has learned that his sister is not actually related to him, and has in fact been a spy from his father, the Emperor, all along. He did have a true sibling, but that child was taken by V.V. before being replaced by Nunnally. Now, the cruel blind girl has left for Britannia, and Lelouch is ready to storm the Geass Directorate to take back his real sibling. Meanwhile in the Geass Cult, Rolo's been brought up by V.V. and taught that lies are horrible yet the world is full of liars, that no one is to be trusted, and that he is completely alone in the world. With Zero's plans, however, this is likely to all change..._

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Geass.

* * *

"Q-1, ready."

"P-2, set to go."

"P-5, ready and waiting, whoo!"

"...Shut up, Tamaki."

"B-3, ready."

"R-4, same."

"C-2, can we get going already?"

Tamaki cast the green-haired witch a confused frown. "'C-2'? There's no 'C' pieces in chess, ya dumb broad!" The other members of their party shot the Japanese man exasperated looks, and it was Chiba who felt the need to explain to him, ever so gently.

"...Her name is 'C.C.', you idiot," she said, rolling her eyes.

"Well, why doesn't she have to be a goddamned chess piece?!"

"Shut it, P-5."

Underneath his Zero mask, Lelouch sighed. _What was I thinking, bringing that guy?_ Then again, if he'd left Tamaki behind no doubt he wouldn't have heard the end of it for weeks. Tamaki made another remark offensive to the women present, and Kallen quickly punished him with a punch upside the head. If this were an anime, Lelouch was fairly certain he'd be sweatdropping. As it was, the desert heat was making him sweat more than the hangar had two weeks earlier, and he didn't have the relief of being able to take off his headgear now.

"That's enough," he snapped, silencing Tamaki and Chiba's squabbling. The pair quickly shut their mouths, standing at attention with the rest of their small group, composed of those two, Kallen, Minami, Asahina and C.C. As Lelouch addressed the party, they all kept their eyes on him, listening carefully (well, maybe not so much C.C.). "Are there any questions?"

The ever doubtful Asahina raised his hand, as expected. "Can you go over this one more time, sir?" He pronounced the word "sir" a bit sarcastically, showing his irritation that their miracle working leader was in reality younger than himself.

Again, Lelouch sighed. "Alright, once more...

"With the aid of Li Xingke of the Chinese Federation, we've located these apparently abandoned ruins here in the middle of the Gobi Desert, which is, in reality, the headquarters of a certain secret cult. The Geass Directorate, which researches and seeks to perfect the geass, the power of which I told you all about earlier.

"The president of this organization is V.V., an immortal and the person who murdered my mother, Marianne the Flash, as well as stole away my sibling. With the help of you who've volunteered for this mission," 'volunteered' here having a much more loose meaning, Lelouch thought, as only Kallen, Minami and Tamaki actually had volunteered, while the two Holy Swords had been allocated to the mission by Tohdoh, and C.C. was just going along because Lelouch had promised her pizza, "We'll capture V.V. if possible, and search for and retrieve my sibling."

Minami raised his hand this time. "Wouldn't it have been in our better interests to have brought along some Knightmare frames?"

"I considered that, but as this is more or a search and rescue mission, Knightmares would only have served to cause panic and give away our position. It'll be easier to search if the people aren't running in fear of their lives or attempting to kill us in defense. Besides, there's no need to make more enemies or kill any innocents. From the information I've been given, most of the cult is made up of researchers and test subjects for the geass, neither of which should pose a threat to us directly. The only enemy we have here is V.V."

"But if they have even just geass users, they'll still be able to resist somewhat," Asahina pointed out. "And I doubt they'd just let a bunch of intruders stroll in. Are you sure just the few of us will be able to take on whatever security they might have?"

"That's why I'm here," C.C. chimed in, twirling a lock of bright green around her finger in boredom. "Trust me, there won't be any problems as far as getting in."

"If you say so..." Asahina did not appear convinced.

"Will we be splitting up?" Chiba asked, crossing her arms.

"Do you have any idea what the targets look like?" Lelouch asked patiently.

"Well, no."

"Did I have any pictures to show you so that you would know who to look for if you were alone?"

"No."

"So if we were to split up, would you be able to find the targets?"

"N-no..." She uncrossed her arms, taking a much more humble stance as she looked away, embarassed.

"Right, so obviously, we won't be splitting up." Lelouch shook his head. _Stupid question_, he mused,_ But at least she didn't raise her hand like the other two. What are they, gradeschoolers?_

"And finally," he continued, "Tamaki will remain here to guard the transport." He gestured to the ship they stood beside. It was a smaller ship diverged from the Ikaruga like a lifeboat, big enough for just the necessary sections of the ship and a Knightmare or two. It wasn't nearly so luxurious as the Ikaruga itself, but its smaller size had allowed them to approach the ruins unnoticed. Personally, Lelouch thought this was a very important and necessary duty (after all, without the transport they'd be stranded in the middle of a desert), but apparently Tamaki didn't agree.

"What?! No fair, why am I stuck up here?!" the Japanese man complained, while the rest of the group gave their leader subtle nods of approval and thanks.

"Well, can we get going then?" C.C. asked, as Tamaki took his place seated besides their transport, grumbling about evil green-haired women, useless teammates and unjust schoolboy terrorists. Giving the witch a nod and sweeping his cape out in a dramatic manner, Lelouch as Zero led his part down the stone steps into the ruins.

----

"V.V.-sama, we may have a problem..."

The immortal glanced up to the hooded man who had spoken. "Problem?" V.V. asked. "Like what?" He lounge in his stone throne, his short legs not even reaching the floor. The sight was somewhat comical, no that the elders of the Directorate would ever dare laugh at him.

"It appears we have intruders."

"So?" V.V. drawled, playing with the ends of some of his long blonde locks. "Just deal with them, obviously. What's the issue?" He examined the hair for dead ends, not that he expected to find any. He hadn't had dead ends for around fifty years.

"Uh, well..." the cloaked man stammered. "It appears that C.C.-sama is among them, sir."

"C.C.? Here?"

"Yes sir. What would you have us do?"

V.V. frowned, drumming his pale fingers against the hard arm of his seat. "Hmm. Is she alone?"

The man appeared a bit more nervous now. "N-no, sir. By the others' uniforms, the looks like small team from the Black Knights. And...Zero himself is with them."

"Zero is?"

"Either that or a very good imposter. But I believe it's the real thing, sir. His dramatic hand gestures were very convincingly Zero-like."

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, the blonde boy said, "Alright then, let them in, but tell C.C. I'd like to have a word with her."

"Should we send word to the Emperor?"

"No, not just yet. We can't be sure that she's willing to cooperate."

"Right, sir. Is that all?"

"Yes, go on," V.V. said, waving the man away. "Oh, and tell Rolo to come here immediately."

"Yes, sir."

He exited, his cloak swishing across the stone floor as he moved. V.V. watched his retreat, sinking back into his seat with a smirk.

"C.C. and Zero, hmm? It seems your theory may have been correct, Charles..."

----

Fortunately for Lelouch, the heat on the surface had died away as they'd come down into the ruins. Now the air was pleasantly cool, if a bit stale, which made wearing his Zero suit and mask much easier.

C.C. had proven her usefulness in this mission early on. Barely minutes after their descent down the sand-worn steps they'd been accosted by a strange man in heavy robes who, at the sight of the green-haired girl, fell to his knees and began groveling. As the Black Knights watched in wonder, C.C. exchanged a few brief words with the man He'd risen to his feet and led them further into the ruins, before reaching a large, flat space at the bottom of the steps and asking them to wait for a short while so that he may inform the leader of their presence.

Now their small team waited, Lelouch as C.C. leaning against a rocky cave wall patiently. Kallen, Minami, Asahina and Chiba, however, were more interested with observing their surroundings in astonishment. After all, none of them had expected the ruins to hide something so large or magnificently built.

The small, crumbled and worn-down rocks that had comprised the entrance in the desert on the surface had given way to a huge underground cavern, an enormous geofront. In this hollow in the earth's crust, a city had been constructed, stone buildings and streets covering the cavern floor. Near the center a tower made of the same material loomed over all, and a strange purple light washed over everything from a huge Thought Elevator at the heart of it all.

At first glance, the city had appeared empty, as if it had been just recently abandoned. But the flickers of movement in the streets, flashes of figures turning corners just out of sight, betrayed the population that inhabited it.

Then the people began coming forward, with curious eyes and questions on their lips, crowding the edges of the clearing the newcomers stood in. There were few dressed the man who'd met them earlier, Lelouch noted with mild surprise. There seemed to be a split, two general groups that made up these people. Adults, men and women of a wide range of ages, that wore the coats of scientists. Those, Lelouch had expected. But the other part was children, dressed in simple brown garments, that eyes their group with wide, awestruck eyes.

Kallen was the first of the party to speak. "So many kids..." she mumbled, scanning the audience. One boy near the front of the watchers raised his hand, pointing at the intruders, but within a moment a researcher near him smacked his hand down and appeared to scold him for something. "Don't tell me they're all the researchers' children...?"

"No," C.C. answered quietly, shaking her head, "Their projects. Most likely orphans that V.V. collected. I'd be wary of them, if I were you. They probably have geass."

"Geass..." Lelouch didn't miss the glance Kallen shot him at the mention of the power.

Beside him, Asahina leaned in to ask, "Is our target here?"

Lelouch looked over the group and shook his head. "No," he returned, "None of these children are old enough..."

Before they could discuss the matter more thoroughly, a hooded man pushed through the onlookers over to them. Lelouch recognized him as the one who'd met them before.

"C.C.-sama," he said, sinking into a bow, "We've announced your arrival, and V.V.-sama wishes to speak with you."

"Mmm, that's convenient," she replied. "It just so happens that we have business with him as well."

"This way, then." With another bow he turned and gestured for them to follow. He led them through winding streets, towards the tower they had witnessed earlier.

As they walked, Kallen fell into step with the green-haired girl, whispering to her. "They seem pretty respectful of you. Did you used to live here or something?"

"Or something," C.C. answered vaguely. Kallen watched her expectantly for a moment, waiting for her to expand on that, but the witch said no more and the redhead was left frowning, unsatisfied.

"Here we are," their guide announced, as they reached a set of large doors. He knocked on them once, and after a moment they opened with a cringe-inducing creaking sound. With a silent gesture, the party was implored to enter the dim room.

It took a moment for their eyes to adjust to the low lighting, but soon they could see several more men cloaked as their guide was, as at the head of the room a throne-like chair, in which a small boy was seated. He was dressed like a noble, and had long blonde hair that fell in waves over the arms and back of the stone seat to the floor. He eyed them with a calm, level stare.

"Long time no see, V.V.," C.C. said, addressing the boy, and the Black Knights all gave her looks of disbelief.

"This is V.V.?" Chiba asked, glancing between the two immortals. Even Lelouch was somewhat surprised. C.C. had described V.V. as being many things, sadistic, hypocritical and psychotic to name a few, but she had never said a word about him being _short_.

"Gentleman, please leave us," the blonde boy said to his cloaked servants.

"What?" one protested, the one that had lead the Knights there. "Sir, you can't be–"

"It's fine. Now, if you will..."

With hesitant bows, they turned and left, the door sliding shut behind them with a resounding booming sound.

As soon as the hooded men were gone, a smile spread across V.V.'s face, and he leant forward in his seat. "It really has been too long, C.C.," he said, his voice light and childlike. "But it looks like you've fallen in with a bad crowd." pinkish-purple eyes slid over to examine the leader of their party. "Zero, I presume?" he asked, smirking. "Or should I say...Lelouch?"

If Lelouch was surprised he didn't let it show, for he simply reached up and removed his mask.

"Fairly impressive," he said, shaking out his black locks and returning the smirk. "How did you know?"

"I head from my dear little brother, Charles."

Lelouch grimaced slightly at the mention of his father, but otherwise remained silent. _So the Emperor does know..._

V.V. turned his attention back to C.C. now. "Well, as much as I'd like to believe that you've agreed to work with us again, I doubt that's the case, what with the entourage you've brought."

"Well, you're right about that, at least," C.C. shot back

"You really should reconsider. Otherwise, Charles and I will have to make you cooperate by force."

"Unfortunately for you," Lelouch broke in, "We're not here to discuss C.C.'s alliances." He drew a gloved hand out from under her cape and sharply snapped his fingers. Chiba, Asahina and Minami withdrew pistols from under their jackets and took aim at V.V., while Kallen adopted an offensive stance in her position beside Zero,

The immortal boy only smirked, however. "Guns? Really, C.C.?" he said arrogantly. "You of all people should know that those can't kill me."

The green-haired girl smiled in response. "Maybe not kill, but I've seen firsthand that some well-placed shots to the limbs can disable even an immortal for a short while. Enough time to restrain you properly, at least."

"Oh?" Despite the threat, V.V. didn't seem at all unnerved. "And what do you hope to accomplish with that?"

"We have some questions we'd like you to answer," Lelouch replied for C.C. "After that, I suspect the Emperor's brother will make an excellent hostage, don't you agree?"

"No doubt Charles would sacrifice much to have me returned." V.V. leaned back in his throne, tossing a blonde lock over his shoulder. "But the fact is, I won't be going anywhere with you."

"And what makes you so sure of that?" Lelouch made sure to maintain his own confident image, but V.V.'s cocky grin was beginning to make him uneasy.

Instead of a verbal response, V.V. simply raised his hand, and in a movement mocking that of Lelouch's earlier, snapped his fingers.

There was a movement at the side of the stone chair as a small figure stepped out from behind it. Then suddenly the silhouette vanished.

He heard started gasps from his soldiers behind him, yet in a heartbeat, the figure was right in front of him. Lelouch's eyes could only catch a flashing knife and smirk, and large, amethyst-colored eyes.

* * *

Dun dun duuuun~! Yes, yes, I'm a horrible person, making you guys wait an extra week only to leave you with a cliffhanger. Not exactly even enough to be considered a "meeting" between Lelouch and Rolo yet, but next week's chapter will take care of that, I promise!

Have I ever mentioned that I love Tamaki? =D And also, oddly enough, Chiba too. No wonder she's getting so large an appearance here, whereas in most fics I've read she's ignored completely...

Please review! It keeps me motivated to keep writing~! 3 And thanks for reading, as always! Next chapter: Unlike Light Yagami, for Lelouch, things don't always go "just as planned".


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